Ships ready to evacuate Gulf cleanup effort as tropical rainstorm brews in Caribbean

Ships ready to leave leaky well as storm brews

ON THE GULF OF MEXICO – Crew members aboard dozens of ships in the Gulf of Mexico prepared Thursday to evacuate as a tropical rainstorm brewing in the Caribbean brought the deep-sea effort to plug BP’s ruptured oil well to a near standstill.
Though the rough weather was … Read more >>.

Australia rape accused ‘faked’ Nepal royal family link

KATHMANDU – A 21-year-old Nepali, who has been arrested in Australia for allegedly raping a 44-year-old woman while delivering food to her residence, faked links to the former royal family of Nepal, according to officials and experts in Nepal.

Amit Hamal, a restaurant delivery boy in Sydney who now faces the charge of raping a woman …. Original article on Gaea Times at  : Australia rape accused ‘faked’ Nepal royal family link.

Man jailed for online gambling in China

BEIJING – In the first case of conviction for online gambling, a Chinese man has been sentenced to one year in prison and fined 10,000 yuan for his involvement in betting over soccer World Cup.

Beijing’s Dongcheng District People’s Court passed the sentence on 20-year-old Zhao Yan for helping others to bet on soccer matches, the …. Source  : Man jailed for online gambling in China.

After 2 years on the run, ‘Barefoot Bandit’ to make first federal court appearance in Seattle

‘Barefoot Bandit’ to make Seattle court appearance

SEATTLE – After a two-year run from the law that stretched across the nation and to the Bahamas, the young man accused of being the “Barefoot Bandit” is back in Washington state.
Colton Harris-Moore, 19, is scheduled to appear Thursday afternoon in federal court at his initial appearance before Magistrate … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : After 2 years on the run, ‘Barefoot Bandit’ to make first federal court appearance in Seattle.

Four cops suspended over custodial death

LUCKNOW – Four policemen have been suspended over the death in police custody of a 45-year-old man in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district, police said Thursday.

Nazar Hussain died Wednesday evening while being interrogated at the Nakhasa police station in Moradabad, some 350 km from Lucknow, in a theft case.
Hussain’s family alleged that he died after …. Original source  : Four cops suspended over custodial death.

IMF says it has canceled $268 million Haiti debt, agrees to $60 million loan

IMF cancels $268M Haiti debt
PARIS – The IMF says it has canceled Haiti’s $268 million debt and will lend the earthquake-devastated island another $60 million to help it with reconstruction plans.

The International Monetary Fund says the decision is part of a plan for long-term reconstruction after the Jan. 12 magnitude-7 quake, which killed as many … Read the original article on Gaea Times at : IMF says it has canceled $268 million Haiti debt, agrees to $60 million loan.

Sohrabuddin case: CBI summons Gujarat minister Amit Shah

NEW DELHI – Gujarat’s Minister of State for Home Amit Shah was Thursday summoned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the 2005 killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh in a fake shootout in Ahmedabad.

A CBI source said Shah’s arrest was only a “matter of time”.
Shah has been accused of calling up …. Source article  : Sohrabuddin case: CBI summons Gujarat minister Amit Shah.

Mine safety officials say facts don’t support Massey claims on ventilation

Mine officials slam Massey claims on ventilation

WASHINGTON – Mine safety officials are painting a portrait of ineptitude and confusion by officials at Massey Energy Co. in the months before an explosion at the company’s West Virginia mine killed 29 men.
The depiction – in an internal memo from a top official at the Mine Safety and …. Original article on Gaea Times at  : Mine safety officials say facts don’t support Massey claims on ventilation.

INSIDE WASHINGTON: Obama’s oil spill commission had web of BP and oil industry interests

INSIDE WASHINGTON: Oil panel’s web of interests
WASHINGTON – Oil runs so deep in American life that when President Barack Obama formed an independent commission to investigate the Gulf spill, he ran into something of an oil patch of his own.
Both commission chairmen had stock in BP as well as broader interests in …. Source  : INSIDE WASHINGTON: Obama’s oil spill commission had web of BP and oil industry interests.

New Zealand busts Asian drug-money laundering gang

WELLINGTON – New Zealand police investigating Asian organised crime raided a money exchange company in Auckland Thursday, claiming it was a multimillion dollar operation to launder illegal drug proceeds.

Two people were arrested and police seized their assets, including a house valued at 2 million New Zealand dollars ($1.4 million) and two vehicles, the firm’s bank … Original source on Gaea Times at : New Zealand busts Asian drug-money laundering gang.

Maoists abduct engineer in Jharkhand

RANCHI – Maoists have abducted an engineer of the Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) from Jharkhand’s Chatra district, police said Thursday.

According to police, eight-10 rebels abducted N.K. Pathak, an engineer posted in Magadh coal project of the CCL, Wednesday night.
He was abducted from his ancestral village Soparam which comes under Tandawa police station of Chatra … Read more : Maoists abduct engineer in Jharkhand.

CBI summons Gujarat home minister in Sohrabuddin case

NEW DELHI – The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Thursday summoned Amit Shah, Gujarat’s minister of state for home, in connection with the 2005 staged killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, who police claimed was a Lashkar-e-Taiba operative.
…. Read the original article  : here.

NKorea, American-led UN Command to meet again amid tension over warship sinking

NKorea, US-led UN Command to meet amid tension

SEOUL, South Korea – The American-led U.N. Command says it will hold talks with North Korea over the sinking of a South Korean warship blamed on Pyongyang.
The U.N. Command said in a statement Thursday the meeting will take place at the Korean border village of Panmunjom on Friday.
It …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : NKorea, American-led UN Command to meet again amid tension over warship sinking.

School principal held for raping student in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD – The principal of an international school here has been arrested on charges of raping a Class 11 student from Mumbai, police said Thursday. The victim had become pregnant.

A case of rape and criminal intimidation has been booked against Salahuddin Ayub, principal of Parkwood International School at Manneguda near Vikarabad on the outskirts of [..] Read the original article: here.

Cross-dresser has sex with dog at British castle

LONDON – A transvestite was caught having sex with a dog in the dry moat of a 13th century castle in Britain.

The 33-year-old man was caught with the animal in the moat of King Henry VIII’s Pendennis Castle situated near the picturesque Falmouth Bay in Cornwall, The Telegraph reported.
The man mounted the pet …. Source article  : Cross-dresser has sex with dog at British castle.

Typhoon Chanthu lashes southern China with torrential rains, high winds amid flood season

Typhoon lashes south China with heavy rain, winds

BEIJING – Typhoon Chanthu sent debris flying through the air in southern China’s Guangdong province on Thursday, bringing rain that could aggravate the country’s worst floods in a decade.
No casualties have been reported so far from Chanthu, which was upgraded from a tropical storm one day earlier. Authorities … Original source on Gaea Times at : Typhoon Chanthu lashes southern China with torrential rains, high winds amid flood season.

Rangers at Grand Teton rescue 16 climbers after thunderstorm; search for 1 suspended for night

16 climbers safe; search for 1 suspended for night

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. – Rescue teams used helicopters to remove 16 injured climbers from an exposed mountain in Grand Teton National Park on Wednesday after a thunderstorm and severe lightning struck the area, a park spokeswoman said. The search for another climber was suspended because [..] Read the original article: here.

China’s vital oil pipeline resumes operations after blast; spill clean up efforts continuing

Pipeline repaired as China works to contain spill
BEIJING – China National Petroleum Corp. said Thursday a vital pipeline has resumed operations after an explosion caused the country’s largest reported oil spill.
Cleanup efforts – marred by the drowning death of a worker, his body coated in crude – continued over 165 square mile … Read more »».

Indian hurt in brawl in Australia unable to eat, talk

MELBOURNE – An Indian student, recuperating in a hospital here with fractures in his jaw after being brutally beaten up by six men, is unable to eat and talk properly, his friend said Thursday.

Bharat Thapar, 24, is in hospital with plates in his jaw and “bruises all over his body” after a brawl in South …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Indian hurt in brawl in Australia unable to eat, talk.

New Zealand PM gets threat letters

AUCKLAND – New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has been threatened with grievous bodily harm in a series of faxed letters, two of which read: “It’s killing time.”

Mark Feary, a 53-year-old farmer from North Canterbury, has been found guilty by the Christchurch district court of threatening to kill the prime minister, and has been fined … Original article on : New Zealand PM gets threat letters.